Located forty miles from Split, the island of Korčula and its surroundings are easily accessible to sailors and all those who rent boats in the nearby marinas. For those traveling from Dubrovnik, the sail is almost the same distance. It is neither close nor far, I would say, but in the end those who go for a week in the summer spend about a day or two around the island. However, it deserves much, much more because its coast is woven with unquestionable beauty, allure, diversity and is suitable for all sailors. Its eastern coast, with a small archipelago in front of the town of Korčula and Lumbarda, is the most interesting for sailing.
Vela Luka bay with the islets of Proizd and Ošjak is equally beautiful. There’s also the Pelješac Channel characterized by strong Maestral (NW), Tramontana (N) and Jugo (SE) winds. And for those who want to be alone, you have the southwest coast from Tri Luke to Brna. Furthermore, Korčula is an island with a lively and picturesque interior that is worth visiting. I’ve been sailing around it since I was a child when I used to go fishing along its shores. There are few summers when I haven’t sailed around it. I’ve peeked into every part of the island, made acquaintances and friends and uncovered places that I never fail to sail to again.
Korčula
Korčula’s narrow streets are full of birch trees, cafes, shops and museums. The town is buzzing with life, so it’s not difficult to spend hours and hours there. A visit to the cathedral and the museum across the street is a must
The town of Korčula is one of the most beautiful on our coast and I can never get enough of staying there. Its historical centre, located on its own small peninsula, surrounded by ramparts and towers, where the master builders of past centuries left their mark, exudes a unique atmosphere. Wandering through the alleys developed in the form of a herringbone is a special experience at any time of the year. Full of birch trees, cafes, shops and museums, the town is buzzing with life, so it’s not difficult to spend hours and hours there. A visit to the cathedral and the museum across the street is a must, and if you have the chance, be sure to climb the bell tower, from where you can see the old part of the town and the archipelago in front of it. Right next to the cathedral is the newly renovated Marko Polo Center dedicated to the great world traveler whose family originated from Korčula and owned the house where the Center is located.
Boaters find it hard to resist the magic of the city, so in high season its shores are quite crowded and it’s not easy to find a place to moor. The safest bet is to moor in the ACI Marina inside the newly built breakwater. Since there are never enough transit places, it’s a good idea to book and pay for the berth in advance, especially if you happen to be in Korčula on Tuesday or Wednesday, when most charter boats arrive. Many of them sail catamarans that occupy two berths, so there is little room for us ordinary folk who sail on monohulls. Larger yachts and traditional gulets are usually moored on the outside of the breakwater, exposed to the Levant (E) and Bura (NE) winds. All the other spots are occupied by mini cruisers and larger yachts in stern-to mooring with a standard four-berth system of two anchor lines. If there is no room in the marina, it is best to go to Luka Korčulanska (Porto Uš) to drop anchor and tie a stern line to shore. After all, until the marina was built, this was the bay where sailors most often stayed. It’s safe, close to the city and yet secluded. A couple of years ago, a municipal harbor was built on its northern shore, with mooring options on the outside. As in other bays, even where there are no buoys, you will be charged for anchoring by the port authority.
Wherever you are (safely) moored, you will find yourself unsure about how to organize your day. Since you’re on vacation and everything is measured from meal to meal, we can say that Korčula has experienced a gastronomic renaissance in recent years. The city is full of restaurants—of course, there are many classic ones aimed at tourists, but there are also more and more of them that stand out in terms of quality. I would say that everything started to move in a good direction with the opening of the luxury residential hotel Lešić Dimitri Palace and its restaurant, where chefs Toni Erceg and then Marko Gajski started setting new standards of fine dining, which eventually led the restaurant and Gajski to their first Michelin star. Overall, this entire process has been beneficial because it was followed by others, not so much in exclusivity but in quality and striving to find their own expression. So in a short period of time, Adio Mare, one of the oldest restaurants that hadn’t been going through the best of times, experienced a new beginning. Restaurants Nigra and Filippi then appeared, earning the latter a Michelin recommendation. Each of them, and they are not the only ones, is a place where a meal will fill you with joy. We really liked Nigra, founded only four years ago, where the young chef Karlo Moretti interprets local ingredients in his own way—a path that could certainly lead to some higher cuisine. Even if at first the menu seems modest with only a few starters and a couple of main dishes, each of them is a story in itself. If we add to that an excellent selection of wines—because Nigra is also a wine bar—exemplary service and a secluded position with a view of the city, what more could you want?
For years, I have not missed a visit to Ms. Smiljana Matijaca and her confectionary shop Cukarin, located in an alley about fifty meters from Plokata (the main town square) where you can try typical Korčula sweets—klašuni, cukarini, bombica, amaretti or harubice. Trust me, if you taste them once you will never forget them. A visit to Cukarin is also an opportunity to chat and ask about local news, because the owner knows all and she shares the information selflessly.
Filled with the energy and joy of these delicious sweets, you can now move on with life. If you haven’t had the chance to watch the Moreška, the famous sword dance performed in memory of the defense against the Algerian general Uluzali, don’t miss watching it in the open-air cinema on the inside of the city ramparts. Similar dances were once performed all over the Mediterranean, but today you can see it only on Korčula. Then, especially if you are young or young-at-heart, feel free to continue the evening in one of the cocktail bars or clubs.
If you followed our advice and stayed for several days, try to rent a car for the day and go into the interior of the island. It’s only three kilometers to Žrnovo, and it is also worth taking a trip to Pupnat and the famous wine-growing villages of Čara and Smokvica. This part of the island will also surprise you with its beauty. Stone houses, fields full of vineyards, excellent winemakers and, most importantly, plenty of locals. Korčula, otherwise the most populous Adriatic island, has maintained life in all its settlements, mostly thanks to wine. As many as thirty winemakers have registered and labeled their wines, and many deserve a visit. The island is best known for Pošip, the island’s autochthonous white wine grape, Grk, whose vineyards are in the sandy soils of Lumbarda, and recently, Plavac Mali. We tried one of the best Pošip wines last summer from the young winemaker Jakša Krajančić in Čara, on the terrace of the tasting room with a view of Čarsko polje and its many vineyards. This year, Nerica Pošip 60 won a gold Decanter medal, as one of only a few orange wines.On the way back, with the required prior notice, stop for dinner in Pupnat at Konoba Mate. It is worth experiencing because of the atmosphere, friendly reception and, above all, the excellent and often imaginatively prepared traditional dishes. The restaurant was founded at the beginning of the millennium by Mate and Mirjana Farac in order to take full advantage of all the products they produce on their family-run farm. As word quickly got out, the menu expanded to include fresh catches from the local fishermen. The running of the establishment is slowly being taken over by their children, especially daughter Biljana, while their son Matij has devoted himself to the beach bar M.A.T.E. in the bay of Pupnatska luka. They’ve also earned a Michelin Green Star for sustainable production and a Bib Gourmand label for their excellent price-to-quality ratio. We had a great time at their place this summer too, and if they raised their pašticada to the level of the other dishes, the sky’s the limit.
Stupe and Badija
These pearls of the Korčula archipelago can be reached with your own boat or with an organized excursion
When you’ve already enjoyed the city, there are still at least three places that you should sail to. The lagoon enclosed by the islets of Vela and Mala Stupa, as well as Majsan and several smaller islets, are some of the most beautiful on the Adriatic. The area can be entered by boats and sailboats with a shallow draft, while those with a deeper draft can anchor west of Majsan. The owners of the restaurant and beach bar on Stupa, where Brane Filipović Grčić cooks, have a dozen mooring buoys, so you can stay there overnight if you don’t mind the loud music. The most famous anchorage spot where people come to swim is on the southern side of Badija, an islet known for its Franciscan monastery. Don’t miss the opportunity to visit it, as well as the church of Our Lady of Mercy and the chapel of the Holy Cross. They still exude that peaceful vibe characteristic of the end of the 14th century, when construction began. Badija and the islets of Planjak and Baretica enclose a sandy lagoon with a depth of four to five meters. The turquoise sea is crystal clear. The small lagoon is a popular bathing spot, so during the day it is full of yachts and boats who mostly return to Korčula in the evening.
Vrnik
The island of tranquil quarries transforms into a retreat for the illustrious
Not even one full mile south of the lagoon is Vrnik. After Badija, it is the largest in the Škoji Archipelago located in front of the eastern coast of Korčula. There are numerous passages, but there are also shallows and reefs. Vrnik is worth a visit because of the atmosphere of quiet quarries, stone carvings and a coast made of perfect white pebbles created from stone fragments washed by the sea. Yet another reason to visit is for a nice lunch or relaxing drink at the Vrnik Arts Club owned by Pero Lozica, a Zagreb lawyer and native of Korčula who is increasingly returning to his roots. He opened a small restaurant and lounge bar in the building of the former public school, which ceased to operate in the 1950’s, decorated a couple of rooms, keeping one classroom with the furniture from that time, while organizing exhibitions in the other. Chef Darko Vlašić and local cook Neda Karapanđa have created an inspiring menu in which they have succeeded in giving their own modern touch to traditional dishes and ingredients.
They prepare fish, make pasta, risottos, bake bread, and whoever wants it can also get meat, including aged steaks. Tiradito, swordfish carpaccio with aji amarillo sauce, lime, orange, berries and olive oil remained in our memory as an extraordinary dish ideal for a hot September afternoon. In order to better remember the extraordinary experience, you can throw yourself into the sea and swim away with pleasure. In the bar, or better yet in front of it, because you sit outside, there is a pleasant and relaxing atmosphere. Every now and then some celebrities drop by too, like this summer when Novak Đoković played a couple of games on the grass with a makeshift net in front of the church right next to the Arts Club with some children who were there for a swim. Next to Vrnik, or rather at the neighboring islet of Kamenjak, you can tie up at one of the four buoys.
If you don’t feel like sailing to these islets and then returning to the marina, you can always rely on one of the numerous local water taxis that transport passengers to these islands from the waterfront opposite the marina. Transportation is also provided by the owners of the restaurants on Stupa and Vrnik if you plan on dining there.
Lumbarda
Scattered on three hills and surrounded by fields and vineyards, the town is known for its famous sculptors and their intoxicating Grk wine
There is another large and picturesque settlement on the east coast of Korčula. Lumbarda, known for its famous Croatian sculptors, masters of stonemasonry and also for the famous intoxicating Grk wine, is scattered on three hills and surrounded by fields and vineyards. You can also stay there for a day or two, enjoying the peaceful surroundings. The local marina, which has seen better days, is small and remains as it was when it was built more than thirty years ago. Papers have been prepared for its thorough renovation, which will include better breakwater protection and facilities on land. For now, there are two jetties used by the locals for their boats, while the longest one towards the breakwater is for sailors. If there is no room, you can anchor in the Lumbarajsko Račišće bay and go by foot from there to Lumbarda. If you are a fan of generous portions of fish and meat, take a dinghy to the Gavuni tavern, known for its very solid dishes at a moderate price.
One thing to never miss whenever here is a visit to Franko Milina-Bire, a winemaker who became famous precisely for his Grk and then with Plavac Mali. His wines are successfully aged in oak barrels and is one of the few who does this with Grk. The wines can rarely be found outside the island because they sell almost everything from the cellar on their modest estate—which is also worth experiencing. The beautifully decorated winery has a sense of tradition and modernity, where many make the pilgrimage to enjoy Grk and Plavac Mali with prosciutto, goat’s cheese and sometimes Korčulanski makarun or peka in the positive atmosphere that always radiates from Franko and his family. Nearby is the Zure restaurant, owned by the Batistić family, where you can eat fish caught by the host and drink his award-winning wines.
Pržina Bay also belongs to Lumbarda, on the south coast of the island. It is the most famous bathing spot on Korčula. A sandy beach of a yellowish-red color stretched out at the bottom of the open bay to the southwest. Along with bathers and beachgoers, boaters come here to drop anchor and enjoy the swimming too. When there is no wind from the south or southwest, to which the bay is open, some sailors spend the night there in peace and tranquility, most often in the shelter of the Ražnjić cape.
Lumbarajsko Račišće
Northern coast
Many sail along this coast but few stop. However, there are several interesting settlements and safe anchorages
Navigation along the coast of the island is also interesting. Korčula is mostly sailed along its northern coast, because everyone who goes to Vis, Hvar or Split passes by there, even though I think the southern coast is more beautiful. But few sailors, wishing to reach those other destinations as soon as possible, stop in one of its bays or harbors.
Most of them are along the coast of the Pelješac Channel, seven miles long and mostly less than a mile wide, where there can be strong seas. Sailing through it is memorable for many reasons. On this side of Pelješac there are the old captaincies of Kučišće and Vignje, the church of St. John high on a cliff above the sea and under it the country’s first Zinfandel vineyards. While sailing, if the northwesterly Maestral is blowing, and here it is usually already around noon, windsurfers and kite surfers will certainly be zipping all around because this is their favorite place to tame the wind. On the Korčula side, you will first encounter the large construction site of the new ferry port in Polačište, and then the bays of Luka Banja and Vrbovica. Unfortunately, there is a lot of construction around these two bays, so they have lost much of their appeal, even though you can anchor in both. However, it is much nicer to do so in Kneža, a small sandy lagoon behind the islets of Mala and Vela Kneža. During the day, it is visited by numerous boats and yachts, but at night, when they sail away, it again becomes a romantic anchorage, where you may enjoy the solitude.
One and a half miles west is Račišće, one of the most beautiful places on the island. Old captain’s houses line the entire bay. In that port, where a fleet of around forty ships belonging to the people of Račišćan once moored, a long pier with a breakwater and a stone quay harks back to that era. Cruise ships usually dock here today, but if you manage to find a place or decide to anchor, you will have a break from the usual boating and tourist crowd. Even today, the locals are sailors and mostly not engaged in tourism.
Further west, you’ll come across a number of small, beautiful coves, but there’s one that should not be missed. For decades, Prigradica was used for loading wine, and passenger ships also set sail from it. That time has passed, so rarely does a ship sail into the port of the picturesque settlement, not counting the catamaran connection, the occasional sailor and fishermen. The three-hundred-meter-long waterfront on the southeast coast of the bay is protected by a more than one-hundred-meter-long pier with a high breakwater. Vessels can berth alongside the part of the breakwater where the rail lines end. A place can also be found along the quayside between the local boats.
There are no major settlements for the next eight miles. However, the coast is dotted with numerous bays, and in some of them, such as Tankaraca, Žukova and Prihodnja, you can stop.
Southern coast
The islets and coves of the southwest coast of Korčula are still mostly untouched and preserved in their natural beauty. We can only hope that future sailors will also find them like that
When you continue sailing west from Pržina, you will find yourself in an area completely different from that between Korčula and Lumbarda. There are no more islets along the coast, it is higher and steeper, and every mile or two you will come across the occasional bay. In most of them there is a nice beach and some houses. The larger coves of Rasohatica, Pavja luka, Orlanduša and Bačvica are eight miles away from Pupnatska Luka. However, although you can anchor in them, they are not suitable for longer stays.
Such stays are only convenient in Pupnatska Luka. It is not known whether the ship of Ivan Klakar from Pupnat, the subject of the famous Dalmatian song, sank right in front of it, but it is certain that that cove, which reaches about five hundred meters inland, is the most beautiful on the island. A few years ago the cove was nearly deserted. During the day it’s filled with swimmers but if you anchor a little further out you won’t even notice the crowd. On the shore next to the already mentioned beach bar is Konoba Mijo, so if you stay overnight you can also have an early dinner.
The next larger settlement is Zavalatica. Unfortunately, unlike most other places on the island, the houses were built without limit and aesthetics, so the harmony of the old settlement has been irreversibly damaged. Otherwise, Zavalatica is the port of the wine-growing village of Čara, located three kilometers away. The well-protected bay is additionally protected to the west by a forty-meter-long old pier with a breakwater where a mooring can be found. This is a great opportunity to visit Luka Krajančić’s winery, only a few hundred meters away. Those who want to stretch their legs can walk to Čara, where there are several of them.
The largest port on the entire southern side of the island is Brna. However, boaters don’t really visit it. It consists of two bays. Istruga, sheltered from all winds, has no serious pier. There are many more possibilities for mooring and anchoring in Brna. There you can berth either at the quay or at the head of the pier, and anchor in the middle of the bay. There’s nothing interesting going on here, except for the nice tavern Konoba Mali Jakov. Brna is connected by a good road to Smokvica, another wine-growing area three and a half kilometers away in the interior of the island which serves as its port. There, one usually goes to one of the wineries, the most famous of which is Toreta.
After setting sail westward from Brna, a series of islets stretches along the coast, which makes it more interesting, and gives us the opportunity to anchor next to any of them, especially during the summer Maestral, and go for a swim. It is especially nice to do so at Crklica, Sridnjak or Vrhovnjak. I don’t even want to look at the coast across the way, let alone sail along it. There are several settlements there, unfortunately irreversibly destroyed by architectural monstrosities and environmentally inappropriate constructions that took off there like nowhere else on the island. This applies especially to Prižba, once a small settlement located in a beautiful area of which nothing is left. That’s why I sail past Luka Karbuni to the lagoon between Veli and Mali Pržnjak—one of those places worth living and sailing for. I spend the day swimming there, and when the weather is stable, I stay overnight at anchor.
The last—and somehow my favorite—place on this side of the island is Tri Luke. We can stay there overnight because all three bays provide excellent protection from westerly winds and the northeasterly Bura, while they are protected from strong southerly winds by the islands of Trstenik, Pržnjak Mali and Veli, and Lukovac. When I started visiting the place, it was an almost deserted stretch of coast, with houses only in the easternmost bay. Only later were cottages and villas built in the other two inlets as well. However, they did not disturb the harmony of the classic Dalmatian landscape of pine trees descending to the sea. Most of all, I like to anchor near the westernmost part, next to the rocks near Rt Ključ and enjoy the silence and swimming, usually in the company of only a few boats
Vela Luka
Located at the end of a bay four nautical miles deep, sailors discovered Vela Luka a long time ago. The construction of a marina has made this destination even more attractive
We’ve finally reached the deep bay of Vela Luka and its anchorages, marinas and moorings along the waterfront. But in the usual circumstances of the summer wind Maestral, I like to first stop at Proizd. This uninhabited islet along the northwestern coast of Korčula is mostly visited by tourists staying in Vela Luka. Local water taxis bring them to the small pier in front of the restaurant in the Perna bay, where they spend the day swimming in the transparent turquoise sea. The best place to do this is in one of the coves on the north side of the island, where you can stretch out on the large white rocks or stone slabs that surround them and for which the island is famous. Those of us who are lucky enough to arrive here by boat can anchor in front of the coves as well. I usually drop anchor in the easternmost of them, at Batalo beach, where the locals come for excursions, swimming and frolicking. I stay the whole day, and in the late afternoon I head towards Vela Luka, where I spend the night.
You have to sail four full miles to reach the waterfront there. The shores of the bay are indented, and two toponyms have a special meaning for those who sail into it. The first is Gradina bay protected by the islets of Sv. Ivan and Gubeša, where there is a concession anchorage, and the other is the famous wooded island of Ošjak, somewhere in the middle of the bay. But there is no pier on it, except for excursion boats and local vessels on the eastern side, so if you want to stay, you should anchor in its lee.
Ever since Marina Korkyra was built five years ago, Vela Luka has become even more attractive to boaters. Although it is not large, with only one hundred and thirty berths, it has a nice restaurant, it is tidy and it is easier to find a place there than on the quay, which is mostly occupied by excursion boats and local vessels, or at one of a dozen buoys in the narrow Kale passage. It gets a little busy in the middle of the week, when numerous charterers boats arrive. There are plans to expand it by another sixty berths when the old ferry dock is moved to the already completed new one on the southern shore of the port.
Even though Vela Luka does not have a Renaissance core and the buildings are more recent, the stay there is pleasant. During the nautical season, it is a lively place with a vibrant atmosphere. There are many cafes, and the long promenade is nice to walk. It is a bit more difficult to find a good meal, but the restaurant in the marina and Konoba Bata are certainly to be recommended. You should also visit the local museum and its gallery of valuable sculptures. A stay in Vela Luka is unimaginable to me without going to Blato, four kilometers away. Located on the edge of the fertile Blatsko polje, many falsely call this place the largest village in the interior of the Adriatic islands. But Blato, despite the fact that its inhabitants engage mainly in agriculture, is anything but a village. It is a small town, which has an urban feel thanks to its narrow tree-lined streets, a park, a church with a tall bell tower and a spacious square with a loggia.
